fix my drink
Each week in this space, we better our beverages together
If you’re one of those deeply misguided people who think you can only drink bubbly for a special occasion, take heart: Thanksgiving certainly qualifies. If you’re among those who have discovered the joys of drinking sparkling wine every day, you may have remarked to yourself how well it pairs with almost any food. Well, turkey dinner is no exception.
And if you’re having bubbly, why not make it pink? Rosé sparkling wines typically incorporate a little red wine for colour and depth, and end up being a little fruitier and sometimes more complex than straight-up brut Champagne and other dry sparkling wines. People might think of rosé bubbles as frivolous, but they can actually carry just a little more heft than your paler sparklers — certainly enough to cut through a forkful of stuffing and gravy. After nearly a solid week of pairing rosé bubblies with practice Thanksgiving dinners — I know, poor me — I can report that pink plus excess equals a marvellous pairing. The mild fruit and steely acidity of a quality rosé sparkling wine work in harmony with the autumnal flavours and heavy calorie load of the North American fall feast. From most affordable to most expensive (all prices from Ontario), a few pink ones to pop open and try:
Santa Alicia Tierra Sur Sparkling Rosé 2014 ($18) is fresh, crisp and clean-tasting, a Chilean that starts with a lot of fruit but finishes with a cleansing acidity. It follows a bite of fall feast quite nicely, washing away the starch and fat with a mineral dryness. De Chanceny Cremant de Loire Rosé Brut ($18.45) is fullbodied, spicy and neither too sweet nor too acidic. You can still taste the waxy strawberries with a bite of chicken. Another pale-orange-salmon rosé in the French mould, Roederer Estate Brut Rosé ($43) actually comes from California but imitates the French style well, especially the characteristic baking yeast aroma you get with Champagne.
On to Champagne itself. Piper-Heidsieck Sauvage Brut Rosé ($70) plays the role of enfant terrible. A deep pink, fruity number (strawberries! orange peel!), it’s youthful and energetic, cheerfully described by the house that makes it as “a great, not so classic, structured, full-bodied Champagne.” Your guests/ hosts will love it. Its sibling, Charles Heidsieck Reserve Rosé ($85) is also robust in flavour, and not in the same way at all. This one looks more orange than pink, but don’t let the paleness deceive you: It’s big stuff. You get the classic Champagne bread flavours all the way down to malt and caramel. This is a big and complex Champagne, yet paradoxically clean and bright. That’s the miracle of Champagne, I suppose.
Finally, you’ ll sometimes see Laurent-Perrier Cuvée Rosé Brut ($100) mentioned as the benchmark rosé Champagne. It smells of overripe strawberries and dusty metal. The texture is just as Champagne should be: like a wave of cold sea foam surfing onto your tongue. I taste baked, cookie-like flavours and a hint of vanilla, yet it’s still clean, refreshing and delicious. Insofar as Thanksgiving is a celebration of prosperity and plenty, I can think of few extravagances more appropriate to the occasion.